I became aware of Leamhain (pronounced lao-en) through word of mouth. Leamhain is a premium non-dairy frozen dessert company and I simply couldn’t wrap my head around an ice cream being non-dairy. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to get a hold of Conor Sweeny, the founder of Leamhain, and asked him how he got started and how he came up with the concept.
Conor created and developed Leamhain with the mission of making a significant and lasting impact on the Irish food industry. Having worked in multiple award-winning restaurants in both Dublin and London, Conor has accumulated the knowledge needed to pull off his mission.
Having been let go from his job as a chef in the critically acclaimed restaurant Vanilla Black during this global pandemic, he was left alone in a London apartment while his partner worked most of their time in the ICU. Things got too rough for the couple in London so they decided to pack it in and move home to Ireland. While isolating in Kerry, where Conor spent a lot of time growing up, he was eating a tub of ice cream wondering what his next step would be, then the penny dropped, he realised he could make this ice cream better! Conor having a plant-based diet, knew he could make it healthier as well.
Conor seems like a perfectionist talking to him. That’s why I believed him when he said he has been working non-stop trying to get the recipe and ingredients down to a tee. Conor has spent hours upon hours perfecting his recipe, and with the first release of his trademark ice cream sandwiches, he did not disappoint. The reception Conor has gotten back from people has been outstanding. With his five different flavours ‘Vanilla Irish Sea Salt’, ‘Chocolate’, ‘Irish Salted Caramel’, ‘Cocoa Crumb and Caramel’ and ‘Strawberry Shortcake’ there’s something for all taste buds. Conor is planning to have full tubs of his product ready to go hopefully sometime in late May/June. Leamhain is stocked in Saucy Cow in Eatyard, and Shoe Lane Coffee shops. I will certainly be picking up a few tubs come June, I suggest you do the same.
Catch Leamhain on Instagram @leamhain_icecream or on his official website Leamhain
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